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Michigan Small Business Person of the Year Award Winners are selected based on the following criteria:

• Growth in number of employees — a benchmark to judge the impact of the business in the job market.
• Increase in sales and/or unit volume — an indication of continued growth.
• Staying power — a substantiated history as an established business.
• Current and past financial performance – financial statements for the last three years to substantiate the improved financial position of the business.
• Innovativeness of product or service – an illustration of the creativity and imagination of the nominee.
• Response to adversity — examples of problems faced by the nominee's business and the methods used to solve them.
• Contributions by the nominee to aid community-oriented projects — evidence of the use of his/her personal time and resources.

The award will be presented on April 29, 2010 during the sixth annual Michigan Celebrates Small Business awards event at The Lansing Center in Lansing.  Governor Jennifer Granholm will be the keynote speaker to recognize the critical importance of small business to the future of Michigan’s economy. 

Reid is in contention for the national award, which will be announced during National Small Business Week, May 22-25

About Charter House Innovations:

In January of 2002, Chuck Reid was offered what would turn out to be the opportunity of a lifetime.  Charter House Inc., a small scale manufacturer of quick service restaurant seating, recruited him to become their Director of Sales. Soon after, he was promoted to General Manager. At that time, Charter House was struggling with lagging sales and considerable debt.  Reid saw potential in the company and in September of 2004, he purchased Charter House and rebranded the company as CHi. This reinvention breathed much needed life into the company.

CHi boasts the largest in-house design firm in West Michigan. With aesthetically unique yet durable products and a vanguard team of designers, CHi quickly piqued the interest of customers such as McDonald’s and Burger King.  CHi’s ability to offer sustainable seating and décor without sacrificing durability and style differentiates them from the competition.

In the past five years, CHi has rocketed to the forefront of the quick-service seating and décor industry. Since 2004, CHi has achieved record-breaking sales with an increase of over 450%. In addition, over 130 new jobs have been created.

While CHi continues to draw on Michigan's extensive reserves of talent and resources, the industry has set its sights elsewhere. CHi combats mass customization by offering unique, proprietary designs at a competitive price. When CHi was reborn in 2004, they were a David in a sea of Goliaths. But by gathering a superior team of designers, creating a unique product of quality and longevity, and developing an international sales force, CHi quickly became one of the top three companies in the industry.  CHi purchases 80% of all materials and products from local manufacturers and distributors, thus funneling millions of dollars into Michigan's economy. 

CHi encourages its employees to volunteer in the community and also sponsors a number of programs to create a company-wide environmental conscience. CHi also contributes financially to worthy local organizations. 

Reid, a 15 year veteran of the restaurant-furniture business, started his career as a teacher of industrial arts.  Reid and his partners diversified his business recently by designing and building CityFlats, a 56-room modern boutique hotel in Holland, Michigan.  CityFlats became the first Midwest hotel to receive Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold Certification, a measure of green building standards.